News

GolfWRX Q&A: Catching up with Jared Solomon of Five Iron Golf

Published

4 years ago

Oct 7, 2022

For the uninitiated, Five Iron Golf is an “urban golf experience” with locations in 10 major cities.

What does that look like? TrackMan, teaching professionals, leagues, in-house fitting, and a place to practice appeal to the serious golfer. A full-service bar, food, televisions, table games, and a wealth of top-of-the-line house clubs draw in the not-so-serious golfer. Simply, Five Iron is a great place to practice, play golf indoors, get fit, or just hang out with friends.

We last spoke with Five Iron Golf founder and CEO Jared Solomon in September of 2019. (You can check out that interview here). In the time since we last talked, big things have been happening at Five Iron, including major expansion and an equally major investment from Callaway.

Check out our conversation with Solomon, below.

GolfWRX: It’s been a couple of years since we talked. I know y’all have had plenty going on and seem to be opening locations all over the place — can you summarize the past few years?

Jared Solomon: Well, COVID-19 definitely changed some of our plans and provided some great learnings. I think what COVID did was force us to focus on the serious golfer. With the surge in the interest in golf, it allowed us to continue to gain momentum and expand to new cities. It worked in our favor to grow the brand for everyone who got the bug to learn the game or just happy to get back out again and hang with friends and have great experiences. Simultaneously we worked on improving our sim build drastically, introduced our three-camera system and also improved our rental clubs, club fitting, lesson experience etc.

GolfWRX: What trends in the larger golf world do you find benefit Five Iron?

JS: Golf is fun. I try to keep telling people this. The more people who hit golf balls, the more who will become consumers of the industry. People playing mini golf, playing at a private club, hitting at Five Iron — it all accomplishes the same thing — growing the interest in the sport.

One thing worth pointing out is that there is a lot of the buzz around “modern golf,” from the Topgolf Callaway rebrand to Tiger and Rory playing sim golf on primetime TV – it legitimizes what we’re doing as “real.” 10 years from now people won’t only think of green grass when they hear the word golf, they are going to think of many different iterations and the amazing experiences they had. Even two years from now, more people will be hitting “off-course” than on. We are happy to be a pioneer, a resource, and an example for this growth.

Jared Solomon

GolfWRX: In my opinion, leagues and the ability to practice on a TrackMan in a state-of-the-art hitting bay are among the two coolest elements of Five Iron. Can you speak to that?

JS: We have a lot of cool elements! Leagues are certainly one of our most successful initiatives. League night is where it all comes together — experiencing a round on amazing courses in the sim, playing with friends, competition, contests and post-work happy hours. It’s all the best elements of the game and entertainment.

We started partnering with local influencers to generate excitement and offer exclusive promo codes on league teams.The prizes we are offering this year are the best yet. We have multiple prize packages to Casa De Campo, a world-class golf and vacation destination located in the Dominican Republic, for the Fall League. The best part is you can literally play one of their courses, Teeth of the Dog, on TrackMan in our sims. All four players on the winning team get six rounds of golf each along with full accommodations. There are also weekly prizes and a closest-to-the-pin competition that brings players another chance to win a trip to Casa de Campo.

As far as technology goes, we really pride ourselves on our setup. TrackMan is the engine, but we custom-build our own bays and have many design elements to enhance the experience, from improving accuracy to better lighting and multiple camera angles. We’ve even improved our TrackMan homes and bag stands. It all matters.

GolfWRX: Of particular interest to GolfWRXers — Can you summarize the fitting services you offer?

JS: We have an incredible fitting experience called The Fitting Lab. It’s a brand agnostic fitting experience that uses a five-step process and best-in-class technology to identify the right components and specifications for each golfer we fit. We build many of our own clubs.

I would say the major difference between us and competitors is that we want to see you again as part of the Five Iron ecosystem. We’re not going to sell you the most expensive clubs just for the heck of it. We deliver a laid-back and personal club-fitting experience that happens inside a Five Iron location, which only adds to the cool-factor. You get fit, you keep practicing, you work with a pro, you check out new equipment when it’s dropped every year. It should all be synergistic to improve your game and lifestyle around golf. That’s the goal at Five Iron. Nothing is mutually exclusive.

GolfWRX: More locations? What else is on the horizon?

JS: We should have 16 by the end of the year, with 5-10 openings next year as well. Boston is a location that’s taken almost three years to open. We’re super excited about that one, which is slated to open later this fall.

GolfWRX: Thanks, Jared!

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2026 Memorial Tournament

Published

2 days ago

Jun 1, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

GolfWRX is on site this week at the Memorial Tournament, with both Alistair Cameron and Tour Photographer Greg Moore on the ground in Dublin, Ohio, where a strong field is assembled to pay homage to the Golden Bear.

In addition to WITB galleries, we’ve already been treated to an in-hand look at Tommy Fleetwood’s new TaylorMade Spider putters.

Check out links to all our photos below.

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

News

Tour Tech Rundown: Heroic Henley

Published

2 days ago

Jun 1, 2026

Ronald Montesano

Around the world, the golf wheel spun this final week in May of 2026. From New Jersey to Austria, with stops in Korea, Texas, and North Carolina (don’t let me route your next trip) the world’s finest put their golf games on display. There were three playoffs, some known commodities and some new talent. It was the sort of week that we hope to have at this point in the seasons. June and July afford double-digit major events, and perhaps, one of this week’s champions will use this success as a springboard to new heights. Time to run it all down, tech style, in this week’s Tour Tech Rundown.

Thanks to WITBHub, Today’s Golfer, GolfWRX, and Inside Tour Golf for initial research into equipment.

PGA Tour @ Charles Schwab Challenge: Heroic Henley denies Cole

Eric Cole did nearly everything that a fellow can do, to secure a first PGA Tour title. He stayed one shot clear of Ryder Cup player Ben Griffin. He kept US Open champion Gary Woodland and wunderkind Michael Brennan two shots distant. He posted 70 on day four to reach twelve under par. And then, Russell Henley revealed his Dr. Strange cloak. Henley made 47 feet of birdie putts on holes 16, 17, and 18, to jump from minus-nine to twelve-deep, and secured a spot in a playoff with Cole. The duo returned to the final tee, and put on a stripe show.

Both golfers found the fairway off the tee, and Henley improved on his regulation play with an approach to four feet. Cole did himself proud, tucking an iron to a dozen feet, but he was unable to convert the putt for three. Henley is one of the best putters on tour, and he proved it once more by draining a putt for a fourth consecutive birdie, and a sixth PGA Tour title. For Eric Cole, that first victory should come, and soon. He has done everything necessary to earn the chalice lift.

Henley’s Suitcase

Driver: Titleist TSi3 at 10 degrees. Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 70g 6.5 TX
Metal: Titleist TS3 at 16.5 degrees. Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 80 TX
Hybrid: Titleist TSi2 at 21 degrees. Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT hybrid 100 TX
Iron: Titleist T250 4-iron. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf AMT Tour White X100
Irons: Titleist T100 5-6 irons. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf AMT Tour White X100
Irons: Titleist T100 7-9 irons. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 at 48 and 50 degrees. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 at 54 and 60 degrees. Shaft: rue Temper Dynamic Golf Tour Issue S400
Putter: Titleist Scotty Cameron T5 Tour Prototype

LPGA @ Shoprite LPGA: Welcome back, Celine!

Soo Bin Joo had her eyes on a maiden LPGA title. She held the lead after two rounds, then hit a red light at the intersection of can-I and how-To. Joo posted plus-two on day three in New Jersey, and dropped to a T4 finish, which was still a career-best for the young Korean golfer. Instead of a new face, a familiar face returned to the top of the podium.

Celine Boutier was the It Girl in 2023. She collected four victories, including a major title at Evian. Boutier reached world number one status, then simply faded into the background. No wins came her way over the next 30 months. On Sunday, she collected LPGA victory number seven, at the same trace as LPGA victory number two.

Day three saw Boutier manage the windswept Seaview Bay course with six birdies and a bogey. She was challenged in the end by Thailand’s Arpichaya Yubol, who signed for a 66 of her own. Yubol came up one shot shy of the top ladder rung. Finishing in third place at -7, two back of the winner, was Ireland’s Lauren Walsh.

Celine’s Suitcase

Driver: PXG 0311 Black Ops Tour-1 at 9 degrees. Shaft: Graphite Design AD IZ-5
Hybrid: PXG 0311 Black Ops at 19 and 22 degrees. Shaft: KBS Hybrid Prototype
Hybrid: PXG 0311 Gen5.
Iron: PXG 0311 P Gen 4 5-9 irons
Wedge: PXG 0311 T Gen 4 PW
Wedges: PXG 0311 Sugar Daddy II at 50, 54, 58 degrees
Putter: Bettinardi Studio Stock 3 DASS

DP World Tour @ Austrian Alpine: KK? KK!

Kota Kaneko has a rhythmic name. It has strong vowels and a run of voiceless stops in its crunchy K sounds. On Sunday in Austria, Kaneko put a stop to a challenge from Portugal’s Ricardo Gouveia and everyone else, and claimed a first-ever title on the DP World Tour. Gouveia did well to reach 16-under par over four days, but Kaneko held firm, two shots in the clear.

Davis Bryant of the USA also forged a strong challenge for the win. He ended in a tie with Gouveia for second place. Kaneko began and finished his final round in a bit of a malaise, but he caught fire midway through. Birdies at 10, 12, and 13 provided the necessary cushion to cruise to the finish line without breaking a serious sweat.

Kaneko’s Suitcase

Driver: Ping Max G440
Metals: TaylorMade Qi4D at 15, 16.5, 21, and 24 degrees
Irons: TaylorMade P760 5 and 6 irons
Irons: TaylorMade P7TW 7-9 irons
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design at 46, 52, 56, and 60 degrees
Putter: Odyssey Ai-One Cruiser Arm Lock #7

Korn Ferry Tour @ UNC Health Championship: Improbably Alvaro

Alvaro Ortiz may have had a bit of scare on the outward nine on Sunday, but he came through in clutch fashion in the end. Ortiz began the day bogey-double, and added another double bogey at the 11th hole. He was mired in a downward trend, spiraling away from the top of the leader’s board. Ortiz found hope at the 14th, where his first birdie of the day tumbled home. Inspired, he closed with birdies and 17 and 18 to catch Ross Steelman at 10-under par, and the duo returned to the 18th deck for overtime.

The extra session concluded in brief time. Ortiz, buoyed by his newly-retrieved confidence, hit the fairway with driver, then approached to six feet and drained the putt. Gobsmacked, Steelman could do little more than smile and applaud, as his run at the top came to a close. The victory was the first for Ortiz on the KFT, and will implant him squarely in the chase for a PGA Tour promotion.

Alvaro’s Suitcase

Driver: Ping G430 MAX driver at 9 degrees loft
Metal: Ping G430 MAX 3W
Iron: Ping iDi Driving Iron
Irons: Ping Blueprint S irons
Wedges
Putter: Scottsdale TR Piper C

A party on the green!

Alvaro’s time comes in Raleigh with his first win @UNCHealthChamp ? pic.twitter.com/2dmtZdbSzk

— Korn Ferry Tour (@KornFerryTour) May 31, 2026

LIV @ Korea: Me llamo Joaquin

Chile’s Joaquin Niemann had been away from the LIV winner’s circle throughout all of 2026. This week in Korea, he reminded us that he is still a force to consider. Niemann chased down Taylor Gooch over the closing holes at Asiad Country Club, then claimed victory with a hole-one birdie in extra time. Bryson DeChambeau claimed solo third, one shot in arrears at minus-eleven. Dustin Johnson finished on fourth, one putt farther back.

Niemann’s Suitcase